Blue-printing machine.



PATENTED SEPT. 1, 1908.

J. 0. PERHAM. BLUE PRINTING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 12,1903.

lm c'n'Lfor JAMES C. PERHAM. M 1

wikmqisses.

' ATTY.

UNITED STATES- JAMES C. PERHAM, OF GLENVILLE TOWNSHIP, SCHENECTADY COUNTY,.NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR PATENT OFFICE.

TO GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

BLUE-PRINTING MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 1, 1908 Application filed May 12, 1903. Serial No. 156,794.

To all whom 'it may concern:

Be it known that L JAMEs C. PERHAM, a citizen of the United States, residing in the township of Glenville, county of Schenectady and State New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Blue- Printin Machines, of which the following is tracings and pads in position within the frame and also adjust the screws and clamps for holding the paper, etc., before an exposure can be made.

preparing to make the exposure in these methods is by far the largest ortion of the whole time required to make t e blue-prints. Furthermore, it is necessary to remove the exposed paper from the frame by hand and carry it to a washing machine and then to a drying chamber. 1 When it is considered that in many large concerns several acres of rints are made daily, the amount of time est in prqparing the printing-frames for exposure an in handling the paper after it has been exposed is very great. The object of my invention is to reduce the t me required to make the blue-prints, especially the time required to prepare the traclngs and the paper for printing, and a further object of my invention is to so organize a machine that it will print any size and shape of drawing expeditiously upon a continuous moving sheet of sensitized paper.

My invention comprises a printing-machine which embodies a rotatable cylinder of glass, or other transparent or'translucent material, around which a continuous strip of sensitized paper and the tracings are adapted'to pass and within which is mounted a source of illumination such as an electric arc lamp or the like.

Referring-to'the drawings, which illustrate the preferred embodiment, of my invention, Figure 1 is a side elevation of the bluerinting machine, and Fig. 2 is a longitudina section through therotatable cylinder of the blueprinting machine.

The time required for Referring now to Fig. 1, 3 represents a cylinder of glass or other transparent or translucent material mounted upon the shaft 4 which isfixed in the cross-bars 5 of the frame 6 on the machine. This shaft 4 has squared ends 7 which fit in correspondingly squared openings in the cross-bars 5 to prevent the rotation of said shaft. 3 is provided with end disks 8 and 8', preferably opaque, rotatably mounted on the shaft 4 as shown in Fig. 2. The shaft 4 is'formed with. an upwardly bent part 9 within the cylinder 3 and acts as a support for the lamps 10 and also as a su port for the semi-cylindrical shield 11 o mounted within the cylinder.

The cylinder 3 is rotated by means of the motor 12 which may berun at any desired speed through the agency of the controlling r eostat 13. A pinion 14 on the end of the motor shaft engages with the gear 15 which is mounted on the same shaft with the bevel gear 16. Said bevel gear 16 engages with the bevel car 17 mounted on the shaft 18 which exten s the entire length of the machine and carries the worm-gear 19 whichmeshes with theworm-Wheel 20. Mounted on the same shaft with the worm-wheel 20 is a sprocket wheel 21, shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1, around which is passed a sprocket chain 22 which also on ages with the large sprocket wheel 23 rigidfy mounted on the hub of the end disk 8, as shown in Fig. 2. Also 25 and26 which mesh with the wrom-wheels 27, 28 and 29 respectively. These last-mentioned worm-wheels are mounted on the ends of the shafts which carry the feeding rollers 30, 31 and 32 respectively. Around these rollers passes the endless belt or webbing 33 of cotton cloth, (luck or other flexible material which also passes around the roller 34 and the belt-tightening roller 35 in the upper part of the frame of the machine. The re ler 35 is vertically adjustable in the slots 36 which are formed in the uprights 54 of the frame of the machine. The said endless webbing or feeding-belt 33 passes over the roller of the cylinder '3 until it reaches the roller 34, then passing around said roller, it moves over the tlghtening-roller 35, thence under the roller 32 and around the roller 30 to the roller 3 1 again.

mounted on the shaft 18 are worm gears 24,-

31, remains in contact with the outer surface The cylinder opaque material also the machine so that it can be taken out when it is desired to replace the exhausted roll 37 of sensitized paper by a fresh roll of paper.

The'shelf 42 is provided for the purpose of shiel assed exible stri or series of fingers 42 rest against the surface of the cylinder and automatically remove the tracings from said 0 linder.

In the operation of this mac he, the motor is started and its speed is regulated by the rheostat 13 until the printing cylinder3 moves at the speed necessary to produce the proper results required for the work in hand. The endless belt or webbin 33 is thus moved in the direction indicate by the arrows. Then the roll 37 of blue print paper is mounted in the frame of the machine and the paper is threaded over the roller 40, around the cylinder 3 between the surface of said cylinder and the belt 33, then over the rollers 34 and 35, from which it passes into the washing machine.

As the sensitized paper is moved through the'machine, the tracings are fed one by one between the cylinder 3 and the roller 40 from the shelf 41. While the tracings are being adjusted and fed into the machine the sensitive paper 39 is revented from being acted upon by the lig t within the cylinder by means of the semi cylindrical shield 11. Just after the paper and tracings come into engagement with the endless feeding-belt 33, they dpass'beyond the edge of the rotecting 11 and the said a er is subjected to the action of the rays of 'g t emanating from the lam s 10 and passing through the tracings. he shield 11 also protects the paper receiving the tracings which have through the printing machine. The

1 from the direct rays ofthe light Within the cylinder as it leaves the machine and protects the eyes of the operator from said rays. As the exposed paper passes over the roller 34, the tracings continue around the cylinder 3 and are collected on the shelf 42 from which they can be taken by the operator and removed to the shelf 41 to be assed through the machine again if sodesired By the use of the endless belt 33, the s eed of whichis exactly equal to the perip era'l speed of the cylinder 3, I am enabled to. hold t e traclngs and paper tightlyagainst the surface of the cylinder while the paper is subjected to the rays of light emanating from the lamps 10, and thus prevent wrinkling of the paper and tracings and also prevent a flexible" material for maintaining relative movement of the tracings and the a er.

p he machine is referably operated in a relativel darkene room. f operated in a brilliantfy lighted room, the exposed parts of the stri of senitized paper should be protected by oods of opaque material.

, If deemed, the tracin 3 may be rolled up in osition within the ro l of sensitized paper be ore placin the latter in the machine, in which case the feeding shelf 41 would not be necessary. Furthermore, if it is desired to print small pieces of sensitized paper instead of a continuous strip, the aper and tracings are arran ed upon the sur ace of the belt 33 at 30 am? are fed into the machine to ether at the roller 31 between the endless beIt 33 and the cylinder.3, thereby dispensing with the shelf 41, roll 37 and roller 40.

The flexible strip 42 then acts to remove automatically from the machine the (pieces of exposed paper and the tracings an land them on the receiving table 42.

I do not desire to restrict myself, except as the scope of the appended claims emands, to the particular form or arrangement of parts herein shown and described, since it is a parent that they may be changed and modifibd without departing from my invention.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is'

1. In a blue-printing machine, a rotatable cylinder of trans arent or translucent material, a source of 1 lumination mounted with in said cylinder, means for driving said cylinder at any desired rate of speed, means for maintaining a strip of sensitized paper in contact with the outer surface of sald cylinder, and mechanism for moving said papermaintaining means through the machine at a speed corresponding to the peripheral speed of said cylinder.

2. In a blue-printing machine, a cylinder of trans arent or translucent material, a source. 0 illumination mounted within said cylinder, means for driving said cylinder at any desired rate of speed, an endless belt of a strip of sensitized paper in contact Wit the outer surface ofsaid cylinder, and mechanism for mov g said belt through the machine at a spec corresponding to the peripheral speed of said cylinder.

3. In a blue-printing machine, a rotatable cylinder of trans arent or translucent material, an endless elt adapted to maintain a said belt is moved at a speed correspondin v to the peripheral speed 0 said cylin r, an means for adjusting the tension of said endless belt.

4. In a blue-printing machine, a cylinder tracing ti htly against the outer surface of of transparent or translucent material roof said cylinder after the paper has been tatably mounted on its longitudinal. axis, subjected to the rays of light. 10-

means for driving said cylinder, means for In witness whereof, I have hereunto set maintaining a strip of sensitizedpaper and a my hand this eleventh da of, May, 1903.

' JAME O. PERHAM. said c lin er during part of arevolution, and Witnesses: flexjb e fingers for automatically removing BENJAMIN B. HULL, the tracing andthe paper from the surface HELEN ORFORD. 

